The great mounds of snow that line streets, walks and parking lots throughout the city are expected to give way to rushing meltwater this weekend, when Environment Canada predicts rain and temperatures well above zero.

Just a week after a winter storm dumped 37 more centimetres of snow on the region, the weather is expected to take a sudden turn, with rain starting Saturday and a high of 9 degrees on Sunday.

On Friday, the City of Ottawa had already started getting ready, said Dan O'Keefe, a manager in charge of road maintenance.

"The city's out right now preparing for any drainage issues that are going to develop on Sunday," he said. "We've got equipment switched over now, opening catch basins and scraping roads to eliminate slush conditions."

He suggested that residents can help by looking for catch basins in front of their homes, and opening a little hole to allow water to drain.

The location of a catch basin on the curb is indicated by a yellow paint mark in the middle of the road.

O'Keefe added that crews will begin spreading salt and sand on the streets once the temperature starts falling again after the rain.